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Blogging as Profressional DevelopmentWhy Blog? -- People blog for all sorts of reasons -- to share memories and experiences, to share ideas, to demonstrate expertise, to earn a living. However, as a means for professional development, the purpose of blogging is to reflect about your teaching and to connect with a personal learning network. Proposition 4 from the **National Board for Professional Teaching Standards** suggests that: Teachers Think Systematically about Their Practice and Learn from Experience.
NBCTs model what it means to be an educated person – they read, they question, they create and they are willing to try new things.
They are familiar with learning theories and instructional strategies and stay abreast of current issues in American education.
They critically examine their practice on a regular basis to deepen knowledge, expand their repertoire of skills, and incorporate new findings into their practice.
Blogging can accomplish all of these standards. How to Start a Blog -- There are many detailed overviews about starting blogs online. Here are a few to get you going. Most I found with a quick search on Google; however mine is a post on my own blog that I wrote just using common sense. It seems to have held up fairly well:
Blogging Platforms -- The more you get into blogging, the bigger a deal this becomes. But, if you're just starting, then any free blogging service will do just fine. Here are a few to choose from:
What's in my Google Reader -- There are hundreds upon hundreds of useful blogs out there to read that discuss education and educational practice. This is a sampling of a few:
Llama Llama Duck - Steve Olivo - My thoughts about technology, instruction, and life in the educational world.
Librarian(')s Matter - Norah Connolly - Middle School Librarian, reader, passionate about creating life-long readers.
Magistra M's Reflections - Danja Mahoney - About trying to find new ways to teach "old stuff" and finding great resources that anyone can use in the classroom or in life.
Weblogg-ed - Will Richardson - Dedicated to discussions and reflections on the use of technologies that are transforming classrooms around the world.
Moving at the Speed of Creativity - Wesley Fryer - A blog that digitally documents a journey of learning and collaboration with other educators and lifelong learners around the globe.
Dangerously Irrelevant - Scott McLeod - This blog is intended to help resolve some of those incongruities for K-12 school leaders.
Cool Cat Teacher - Vicki A. Davis - Teaching contente with new tools, enthusiasm, and the belief that teaching is a noble calling!
The Edublogger - Sue Waters - Tricks, tips, ideas and help with using web 2.0 technologies and edublogs.
Blogging as Professional Development Handout
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Blogging as Profressional Development Why Blog? -- People blog for all sorts of reasons -- to share memories and experiences, to share ideas, to demonstrate expertise, to earn a living. However, as a means for professional development, the purpose of blogging is to reflect about your teaching and to connect with a personal learning network. Proposition 4 from the **National Board for Professional Teaching Standards** suggests that: Teachers Think Systematically about Their Practice and Learn from Experience.
- NBCTs model what it means to be an educated person – they read, they question, they create and they are willing to try new things.
- They are familiar with learning theories and instructional strategies and stay abreast of current issues in American education.
- They critically examine their practice on a regular basis to deepen knowledge, expand their repertoire of skills, and incorporate new findings into their practice.
Blogging can accomplish all of these standards. How to Start a Blog -- There are many detailed overviews about starting blogs online. Here are a few to get you going. Most I found with a quick search on Google; however mine is a post on my own blog that I wrote just using common sense. It seems to have held up fairly well:- How to Blog - A Beginner's Blog Publishing Guide
- Learning About Blogging and How To Blog
- Holy Blogs, Batman! - My 7 Habits of an Effective Blog
- How to Blog Safely (About Work or Anything Else)
Blogging Platforms -- The more you get into blogging, the bigger a deal this becomes. But, if you're just starting, then any free blogging service will do just fine. Here are a few to choose from:- Google Blogger
- WordPress
- Edublogs
- Class Blogmeister
- ePals School Blog
- 21 Classes
What's in my Google Reader -- There are hundreds upon hundreds of useful blogs out there to read that discuss education and educational practice. This is a sampling of a few: